Inquest into death of Ivona Jovanovic hears triple-0 call delayed

A man charged with manslaughter of his ex-girlfriend before the case was later dropped was in state of panic and delayed the call to emergency services for help, an inquest has heard.

Ivona Jovanovic was fatally shot in the chest inside a Gold Coast home in September 2018.

The man charged with manslaughter of his ex-girlfriend before the case was later dropped allegedly told a witness he accidentally tripped on the stairs causing the gun to go off, a court has heard.

The same witness also told police that as the man’s mother went to dial triple-0, he told her in a state of panic “no, don’t call yet, wait”.

Serbian-born influencer Ivona Jovanovic, 27, was fatally shot in the chest inside her ex-boyfriend’s family home on Renfrew Ave in the Gold Coast suburb of Highland Park on September 8, 2019. She died that night in Gold Coast University Hospital.

Her former partner — 32-year-old bodybuilder Christos Panagakos, who previously had ties to the Mongols outlaw motorcycle gang — was charged with her manslaughter, but the charge was dropped in March last year following a committal hearing in court.

Mr Panagakos has always denied the allegations.

Ivona Jovanovic was shot at her ex-boyfriend’s family home and died later in hospital.

A three-day coronial inquest began on Monday in Brisbane, overseen by Coroner Donald MacKenzie, investigating the circumstances of Ms Jovanovic’s death.

Among the witnesses to take the stand was Daine Walker, a friend of Mr Panagakos who was also at the house that day.

Mr Walker said he was a heavy drug user for a decade – including when Ms Jovanovic’s died. He testified that he had no memory of those 10 years, describing it as “a big blur”.

However, while imprisoned for assault in NSW in May 2021, Mr Walker gave a statement to police about the night Ms Jovanovic died.

In his statement, Mr Walker said he and Brendan – believed to be Brendan James Elliott – stepped outside a few minutes before the shooting.

“Brendan and I walked out the front into the driveway to wait for Christos [Mr Panagakos],” Mr Walker’s 2021 statement read.

“Two minutes later I heard a thud and then a bang like a gun going off from inside the house, the sounds were one after the other. Brendan and I went back to the front door and I could see someone lying on the ground.

“Christos was standing at the top of the stairs, I remember him saying ‘I tripped and it just went off’ and Michelle [Mrs Panagakos] was crying and screaming.

“I saw a gun on the floor at the top of the stairs, I would describe it as looking like a cowboy gun with a wooden handle.

Christos Panagakos was charged with manslaughter, but the charge was later dropped.

“I remember Christos saying something like ‘what did I do? F---! I didn’t mean it, I was coming up the stairs’ and I said something like ‘brother, relax, just call the ambulance’.

“Michelle had the phone in her hand and was going to call the ambulance, but I remember Christos said something like ‘no, don’t call yet, wait’.”

On the stand on Monday, Mr Walker could not confirm any details in his statement, he said he had no recollection of writing the statement from prison in 2021.

Michelle Panagakos also gave evidence on Monday, saying she had been talking to Ms Jovanovic moments before the gunshot, but she walked away to put some washing in the laundry and then heard two “bang” sounds.

Mrs Panagakos said as she saw Ms Jovanovic wounded, she saw her son and another man, who she has never positively identified, coming up the internal stairs from the lower level.

“I could see him [Mr Panagakos] going up the stairs with his arm reaching into a jumper, putting the jumper on, and I could see the top of someone’s head on the right side – someone with dark hair behind him walking up the stairs with him,” she testified.

“I could see a gun spinning around [near Ms Jovanovic’s feet], I don’t know whether she had kicked it or something.

“I remember putting towels on her [Ms Jovanovic’s wound], and in my peripheral vision there were people walking behind me and out, but I assumed they were moving cars for the ambulance.”

Mrs Panagakos made two triple-0 calls that night – the first at 8.22pm lasting 33 seconds, in which she asked for an ambulance to the Gold Coast before hanging up.

The second was at 8.23pm and lasted 17 minutes. A recording was played at the inquest.

Michelle Panagakos: “Someone was carrying a bag and it dropped and something fell out and all of a sudden I just heard a gun go off.”

Emergency operator: “In the house there, was it?”

Michelle Panagakos: “Yes, just like I was coming up the stairs and she was standing there talking and ‘bang’ something just went off.”

Police dogs working around the neighbourhood where Ivona Jovanovic. Picture: Emily Halloran.

During the call, Mrs Panagakos could be heard comforting Ms Jovanovic.

“Ivona, sweetheart … keep breathing … don’t cry … it’s okay, the ambulance is almost here.”

Recordings of prison calls between Mrs Panagakos and her son were also played on Monday, from September 18 and 20 in 2019.

In the first call, Mrs Panagakos told her son “not to talk about it at all” and “there is no one they can speak to but me, I’m the only one”.

In the second call, Mr Panagakos said “everyone knows it’s not fair dinkum, but it’s like what the f---” and his mother reiterates “I don’t want you talking about anything, it’s crap”.

Solicitor Dylan Kerr – representing Ms Jovanovic’s family – asked Mrs Panagakos whether she and her son were “talking in code” on those calls.

“There is no code, you make me sound like some sort of spy. I’m referring to newspaper articles, and that’s what I think he’s referring to, Instagram and Facebook and just a whole heap of rubbish [about what happened to Ms Jovanovic],” Mrs Panagakos responded.

Mrs Panagakos also rejected claims that her son said immediately after the shooting words to the effect of “I tripped and it went off”.

“Everything was happening too quickly, there was no conversation,” she testified.

The inquest continues on Tuesday, a total of 16 witnesses are due to give evidence.

Originally published as Inquest into death of Ivona Jovanovic hears triple-0 call delayed